Electromagnetic Induction

"Concepts without factual content are empty; sense data without concepts are
blind.... The understanding cannot see. The senses cannot think. By their union
only can knowledge be produced."
I. Kant (1724-1804)

OBJECTIVES
To study Faraday’s law quantitatively. To observe the action of a transformer.

THEORY
About 1820 the Danish physicist Oersted noticed that a wire carrying an electric current
produced a magnetic field. It occurred to Michael Faraday to ask the converse question: Is a
current produced by a magnetic field? The answer he found is yes, but only if the field is
changing. Faraday's results can be summarized in a simple form for a loop of wire by the
equation

d" B (t)
V(t) = ! (1)
dt

Here V(t) is the induced voltage measured at a gap in the loop and !B(t) is the magnetic flux
!
through the loop. For a multi-turn loop in a uniform magnetic field B , the flux is given by

! B (t) = BNA cos" (2)

!
where A is the area of the loop, N is the number of turns and ! is the angle between B and a
perpendicular to the plane of the loop.
The magnetic flux through a loop might change for a variety of reasons, but in this
experiment we will only be concerned with the effect of a sinusoidally varying current in a
nearby circuit. This will produce a sinusoidally varying magnetic field, which causes a flux of
magnitude

! B (t) = (Bsin "t)NAcos # (3)

The voltage induced is given by

 Rp Rs
Vp Lp Ls Vs

Fig. 1 Circuit diagram of a simplified transformer, including resistance of the wire in the coils.

V(t) = (B! cos !t)NAcos " (4)

This expression tells us that the amplitude of the induced voltage is proportional to the amplitude
of the magnetic field variation B, the frequency !, and the cosine of the angle " between the field
and the loop. Since B is proportional to the amplitude of the sinusoidally varying current which
causes the field, we can investigate all these dependencies experimentally.
Transformers are technically important in both power and signal circuits because they can
be used to change voltage and impedance levels as needed. A transformer basically consists of
two coils, the primary and secondary, placed in close proximity as indicated in Fig. 1.
In operation the primary is driven by some sort of signal source, and a voltage is induced
in the secondary. The individual coils are characterized by their inductance and resistance. Since
the field of the primary is not usually uniform over the secondary it is difficult to calculate the
induced voltage, so we simply define the mutual inductance M by the relation

dI p (t)
Vs (t) = !M (5)
dt

where Vs(t) is the induced voltage and Ip(t) is the current in the primary. Mutual inductance has
the same unit, the Henry, as inductance. The relation between the primary and secondary
voltages, Vp(t) and Vs(t), is obviously complicated for the transformer as shown. The situation
simplifies greatly if we can construct the device so that all the magnetic flux that links the
primary also links the secondary and so that the resistances Rp and Rs are small relative to the
inductive reactances at the operating frequency. For such an ideal transformer one can show that

Vs (t) Ns
= (6)
Vp (t) N p

where Ns/Np is the ratio of turns on the coils.

PHYS 112 Electromagnetic Induction 2

 CH 1
Large Small
red coil coil
Function GND
generator
CH 2
black
51!
GND
Fig. 2. Circuit for measuring induced voltage. The large coil has 552 turns and an average radius
of 0.12 m. The smaller pickup coil has 200 turns and an average radius of 0.033 m.

EXPERIMENTAL PROCEDURE
Basic tests of Faraday’s Law
The circuit of Fig. 2 will allow us to quantitatively determine the induced voltage in a
simple system. The function generator produces a sinusoidal current which causes a varying field
inside one of a pair of large mounted coils. A smaller coil on a pivoting mount is centered in the
larger coil that is being driven. The scope is used to measure the induced voltage Vs(t) and the
voltage across the resistor, VR(t), which is proportional to the current in the large coil and hence
the field.
Wire the circuit as shown, and set the function generator for about 400 Hz sine output.
Use the TTL output as an external trigger signal and adjust the scope to display the signal from
the small coil. By turning the pickup coil on its mount you should be able to see the angular
dependence of the induced voltage.
The assumption of a uniform field across the pickup coil is reasonably satisfied because
the driving coil is substantially bigger than the pickup coil. The amplitude of the uniform field is
approximately that at the center of the driving coil

µ 0 N pI p
B= (7)
2ap

where ap is the average radius of the driving coil. The peak current in the driving coil, Ip, is
related to the peak voltage across the resistor by VR = IpR, so Eq. 4 can be written in terms of
measurable quantities as

! 2 µ0 N p Ns as2 fVR
Vs (t) = cos"t cos # (8)
a pR

PHYS 112 Electromagnetic Induction 3

where f = !/2" is the driving frequency.
We can test this deduction from Faraday's law by varying the amplitude and frequency of
the function generator output while measuring Vs(t). Be sure the pickup coil is in the plane of the
large coil and coaxial with it. By adjusting the function generator amplitude, you can vary the
current in the large coil. Use the scope to observe the amplitude of the induced voltage and the
amplitude of the voltage across the resistor for several currents at a fixed f, noting that they are
proportional. You can also check the phase shift between the primary current and the induced
voltage. Do you observe the expected ninety degree (one-quarter cycle) phase shift?
A more interesting test is to check the frequency dependence of Vs(t) from about 100 Hz
to about 2 kHz. Using the scope, measure the amplitudes of Vs(t) and VR(t) at several frequencies
and compare your measurements with a calculation from Eq. 8. Is the prediction reasonably
accurate?
You should also verify the angular dependence predicted by Eq. 8. Set the function
generator to a convenient frequency near 1000 Hz and vary the angle of the pick-up coil relative
to the driving coil. Is a plot of the amplitude of Vs(t) vs cos# a straight line, as expected?
If you have time, you might also want to investigate what happens when you drive the
coil with a low frequency triangle wave, about 30 Hz, rather than a sine wave. Can you explain
your observations in terms of Faraday's law?

Transformers
The model transformer consists of two identical coils mounted coaxially on a small box,
along with two resistors. Two pieces of magnetic material, a solid iron bar and a bundle of iron
wires, are also provided.

CH 1
350 350
red turns turns
Function
generator CH 2 GND
black
45Ω 45Ω

GND
Fig. 3 Wiring diagram for the model transformer, with plug connectors as indicated. The 45 !
resistors are provided for current measurement. The effective coil resistance is not shown.

PHYS 112 Electromagnetic Induction 4

 Connect the model transformer as shown in Fig. 3, including the 45 ! resistor in series
with the primary to measure the current. Using the definition in Eq. 5, determine M for several
frequencies between 100 Hz and 100 kHz, using the scope as your voltmeter to measure
amplitudes. Repeat the measurements with the solid iron rod and then the bundle of wires
inserted through the pair of coils. What is the effect of the magnetic material on M? Can you
explain the difference in the frequency dependence for the solid bar and the wires? (Hint: Look
up eddy currents in your text.)
As a last exercise, you can see how close your transformer is to the “ideal”, as defined by
Eq. 6. Connect the primary coil directly to the function generator and use the scope to measure
the primary and secondary voltage amplitudes. Pick a fairly low frequency, about 1000 Hz, and
determine the amplitude ratio Vs/Vp with and without the iron cores. Which core makes the
transformer most like the ideal model?

PHYS 112 Electromagnetic Induction 5